Labor day preps, bug out buckets

Discussion in 'General Survival and Preparedness' started by Tempstar, Sep 6, 2016.


  1. Tempstar

    Tempstar Monkey+++

    So I helped my neighbor test his new commercial vacuum sealer.
    We soon realized we needed water to cook with, so we added 2 mylar gallon bags of treated water. IMG_0249.JPG IMG_0248.JPG IMG_0252.JPG
    Throw a Patriot Pantry 72 hour kit, 2 cups of rice, 2 cups of pintos (extenders to be added to the Patriot Pantry food)salt,pepper,garlic salt, dehydrated onions, 2 packs of Ramen noodles, freeze dried strawberries, 3 day lifeboat bar, some vacuum sealed crackers, and a few granola bars. Add a cheap stove and cook set, dish liquid (Dawn, cleans anything, great shampoo!) toilet paper, matches and a lighter, some folded and vacuum sealed paper towels,utensils, a vacuum sealed cotton cloth, MSR water filter, and a rain poncho. It all fits in a 5 gallon bucket.
    We chose a bucket because it has a handle and can be carried in one hand, is easily sealed and re-sealed,does not scream "Hey thief, I'm supplies! steal me!", and will float even with the 2 gallons of water in it. We have all eaten all the foods we used and like them. We can eat for 10 days of low activity or 7 of high activity from each bucket. The plan is for 6 buckets per person (18 buckets should we bug out). Every 3 buckets have a stove and cook set, 2 have MSR water filters to supplement those in the go packs. Contents will vary some, but 10 days is our goal and I think we hit it. The uses of the buckets once emptied is too long to list. I have a bucket toilet seat and roll of bags and some lime for the food once we're finished with it.
    As soon as I order some bucket organizers (3 divided trays that fit into a bucket) I'll put a very comprehensive first aid kit in one. An additional one will have vacuum packed clothes and more toilet paper. Weight on the first bucket was 21 pounds, and I can carry 4 at a time. The twenty buckets will fit in the bed of the truck easily with room to spare.
    Using extenders such as rice doubles the 4 servings of the freeze dried food. We treat each two servings as one: I understand the manufacturers claiming more to sell food, but a 4 serving freeze dried product always falls short by half, at least for us. Adding a half cup of rice makes up the difference. Pinto beans give us the protein we're missing by not having meat and are very filling. I'm also convinced that Ramen noodles have very little nutritional value but are filling when you're hungry.
    So Monkeys, what did I miss? Remember, I'll always have my pack and boom stick....
     
  2. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    You know I haven't done this being that I have no intention of leaving. I have plenty of stored food in buckets but none that I can just grab and run. But, after reading your thread, what if I was forced to leave?... I should at the very least have enough grab-n-go buckets to last the 2 of us a week. I have copied your thread and will use your info as the start of a new project, winter is coming here so I want to finish this before its in high gear. Thanks for sharing!

    They only thing I could think of is perhaps a box of pistol or rifle ammo in each bucket.
    EDIT: Oh! Toothpaste or powder, personal hygiene stuff
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2016
    Seepalaces, Dont and Ura-Ki like this.
  3. arleigh

    arleigh Goophy monkey

    Years ago when I discovered the survivalist forum, one of the members demonstrated the difference between vacuum sealing and using oxygen absorbers, and the oxygen absorbers are superior.
    Using the buckets to store ever thing is a great idea, especially if you have a bug out plan .
    BTW WINCO sells the tool for opening the bucket lids. I bought several.
    I portioned my dry goods rice beans ect. by the meal and put oxygen absorbers in each bag and those bags in a larger one with another 02 absorber and filled the bucket with them and an other 02 absorber before sealing .
    The 02 absorber takes care of the air in the bucket and in the event the bucket gets compromised the individual bags protect the residue .
    Things that are in food grade bags don't need to be in food grade buckets, and things not food don't need them either.
    The bag should be able to stand alone ,and you could store them in a card board box ,except that the card board box is vulnerable to mice and rough handling , and I have even seen rodents chew the lid off of buckets as well.
    Food grade buckets are originally designed to handle food directly like pickles and bulk foods ,but are ideal for water storage.
    If your secondary purpose is water transportation once the bucket is empty, then food grade is a good idea. but even for short periods of time, clean nonfood grade bucket is a great tool for moving water.
    In a drastic emergency situation all water needs to be filtered any way, even stored water .
    I don't count on directly drinking any thing that has been in storage, no matter how well it was put away, with out filtering and aerating it . I have set aside buckets for filtration using, coffee filters, gravel, sand, and activated charcoal. Even distillation if necessary.
     
    Dont, Ura-Ki and Bandit99 like this.
  4. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @arleigh so...so for example, you are placing a 5 gallon mylar bag in the food grade bucket then filling it with mylar sealed 1 gallon bags of rice, beans, etc. then sealing the 5 gallon mylar bag also and all bags, 1 gallon bags and the 5 gallon bag, have O2 absorbers... I like that idea a lot, double protection. I get my food buckets cheap for $2 each as I buy used pickle buckets so it is all I use, it's a bit of a problem to get the stink out but big cost savings.

    Perhaps a better approach to water would be to include a container of water in the bucket, say 2 gallons, but include a Life Straw or some other filter that will allow the water to be drank directly and immediately plus something else to treat the water for use later. I don't know what is the latest for treating water, use to be iodine, but sure they got something better by now.

    Are 1 gallon milk jugs acceptable for temporary storage of water and, if so, for how long?
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  5. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    I like this thread. I shuddered when you said you put water in there. I discovered busted water in the closet this weekend. Thank goodness I had it on something that collected it- the just in case. Also- everything in there is quick easy and simple except for pinto beans. I have been trying to figure out what to sub for the beans. Peanut butter goes rancid quick but would fit the easy, simple requirement of these buckets.
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  6. Ura-Ki

    Ura-Ki Grampa Monkey

    I question the need for so many water filters for the MSR set up. If it's the one I am thinking of, the filters are good for over 20k gal. of water. one extra should be enough. tabs and iodine don't do a very good job of purifying water, but when used make sure it's AFTER filtration, not before, or you ruin the filter! I prefer having all food grade buckets, there are so many reasons to list, but wet storage, and fermentation are two bigger needs besides water storage that I address. For the beans and rice folks, you want to soak these long enough to be able to soften them up for eating, these buckets are perfect for that. They also make dry storage of clothing and other items simple,and for storage, foraging, and found items, make great receptacles! And remember, they can always be re treated as food grade when needed!
     
  7. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    NB, re-treated. If they weren't food grade to start, there's not much you can do. The type of plastic is the key to these things, along with what might have been done to contaminate them in use.
     
    GrayGhost and Ura-Ki like this.
  8. Ura-Ki

    Ura-Ki Grampa Monkey

    Exactly, that's why the food grade to start! In practice, I would be trying to keep them from getting contaminated, and only using the non food grade for uses that might damage the good ones!
     
    Sgt Nambu and Motomom34 like this.
  9. Tempstar

    Tempstar Monkey+++

    So to address a few things, O2 absorbers first: They are fine and I have used them. I like vacuum packing better simply because I don't have to lug air around. I can also put a change of clothes in a vac sealed bag the size of notebook paper and about 3" thick.My favorite thing is that I instantly know if a vac seal bag has been compromised.
    The buckets are Pickle buckets from Hardee's. wash them and put them in the sun with the lid off for a day and the smell is gone.
    Water always seemed missing from everyone's kits, mine included. I have 2 gallons in Mylar and everything else in vac seal bags. If a water bursts, I still have the water in the bucket and nothing is harmed.
    Great responses all!
     
  10. rockriver

    rockriver Monkey+

    re water storage... I stored some water in plastic milk jugs. sounded like a good idea.. cool and dry location, but the jugs broke down. it was probably over a year. normal milk jugs is a bad idea for long term. hmm.. if you rotate them, it might work.
     
  11. GrayGhost

    GrayGhost Monkey+++

    I've been thinking about this for some time, as I can get all the fg buckets I need from work...free! Glad to see you you doing this. Seems to be al well put-together kit.
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  12. Tackleberry

    Tackleberry Krieg Hündchen

    Costco has these pre-made with a twenty year shelf life.
     
  13. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @Ura-Ki "iodine don't do a very good job of purifying water, but when used make sure it's AFTER filtration, not before, or you ruin the filter!"
    I knew iodine wasn't that great but it will ruin one's filter? Are you sure? I never knew this...always learning here in the monkey tree.

    @Tackleberry I didn't realize Costco sold stuff like this until you mentioned it, just never considered them for whatever reason. Looking now and the carry about everything to include freeze-dried...

    @rockriver That's what we do is rotate them. We always have them since I use milk in tea (a taste from my England days) and it seems a shame to thrown them away so we fill them and then put a date on them with felt tip pen (Sharpie) and throw them away if older than 6 months or my wife using them in the garden, cuts bottom out and sticks them over veg/flowers to start them sort of like a mini-green house.
     
    Last edited: Sep 7, 2016
  14. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    As always "it depends". Iodine won't necessarily ruin a filter, but the materials of the filter MAY be susceptible to some sort of chemical attack. Iodine is an aggressive oxidizing agent, that is what makes it quite effective on "bugs". However, it is preferentially adsorbed by charcoal filters, thus reducing their effectiveness on other "stuff."

    It's always good to physically take out the miscellaneous crud by filtration before the final step of purification, de-bugging, whether done by chemical or other means like boiling. (Crud in the boiler ain't never nice.)
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  15. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @ghrit Yeah, always knew about removing the crud first before purification but honestly never thought or even heard about iodine being bad on one's water filter until now. It doesn't make perfect sense. Iodine is an old friend of mine and always got a bottle with me in car or if hiking.
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  16. GrayGhost

    GrayGhost Monkey+++

    Thinking on this a little further, it might be wise to mark the buckets that contain the stoves, filters, etc. If for some reason buckets need to be ditched/stashed, whatever, you can identify and take the ones with the extra goodies quickly, if need be.
     
    Ura-Ki likes this.
  17. Ura-Ki

    Ura-Ki Grampa Monkey

    Correct about the Iodine as well as the other treatments. Charcoal filtration systems are very sensitive to chemicals and iodine will actually break down the filters over time. One other thing to remember about iodine is that while a little in your system is a good thing, more will cause harm. Chemicals that we normally have with us for treatment of wounds, cleaning and disinfecting, and water treatment are ok in small amounts when ingested, but larger amounts can have serious permanent effects on our bodies! Be safe, and look at each of these chemicals and what they actually do, how they effect our bodies!
     
    GrayGhost likes this.
survivalmonkey SSL seal        survivalmonkey.com warrant canary
17282WuJHksJ9798f34razfKbPATqTq9E7